Shattered Minds, Shattered Hearts
by Tathagata
Summary: Amber & Inuyasha crossover. When a shard of the Shikon Jewel makes its way to Amber, Corwin is sent to investigate. Rated for language, ideas, possible citrus. R&R. I own neither Inu & co., & any Amberites both belong to their respective owners.
1. The Start of Trouble

Every day I had gone to check on my grandfather. Every day had shown the same results. I had not seen Dworkin this mentally fragmented since… well since the Patternfall fiasco. Damn my siblings and their power-plays!

The one person who might know something about our Sire's condition is no longer around. My father, Oberon, died fixing what Brand, Bleys, and Fiona had done. Only Brand had opposed the Family in the end. I am convinced he was insane… clinically nuts, more than Hannibal Lector. I wondered sometimes if Hannibal is one of Brand's mad Shadows.

Such a sorry state for the former Liege to be a messenger. I suppose it didn't really matter anyways. Someone had to do it, and I got stuck with the job.

My black boots created echoes in the empty stone antechamber, and my silver-lined cloak fluttered with my swift movements. A young man stood when he saw me enter, and saluted me. His weary blue eyes focused on my green ones.

"Has there been any change?" I asked.

"No, Lord Corwin, Dworkin is still… ill," the guard informed me.

"You look like you haven't slept in days. When does the next shift take over?"

"Uhh… three hours, My Lord."

"How long are your shifts?"

"Eighteen hours, My Lord."

"I need to speak with Dworkin. You are dismissed from duty; go and get some shut-eye."

"What about the post, My Lord?"

"I shall see to it that more men are assigned to this post. Until your replacement arrives, I will take over."

He bowed, and turned to leave.

"What is your name?"

"Kaleb, My Lord."

"Very well. Good evening, Kaleb."

I entered the chamber, not sure what I would find. Seeing my grandfather sketching Trumps of the Unicorn surprised me. I waited a moment, hoping he would see me, or otherwise note my presence. After a few moments filled with pencil scraping on paper, I cleared my throat. He turned.

His face seemed to melt, and flowed to mimic my own. I was filled with déjà vu, remembering the last time he had presented himself to me. He had been mentally ill then, as well.

I stared into the same-looking green eyes, framed by the same tanned face, framed by the same black hair and beard. He, once again, looked slightly thinner than myself, but that was the only difference. Even the silver rose clasping my cloak on was duplicated.

"Well, well. It is good to see you again, boy."

"You seem to be yourself today."

"Myself… that is a strange word. Who am I?"

"Dworkin, creator of the Pattern. Father of Oberon, now dead."

He nodded, but seemed distracted.

"I made a pattern? Was it crochet?"

His features shifted again, and he took the form of Fiona.

"I saw her yesterday, could you tell me who she was. She was nice."

"The person you are imitating, you mean?  
He/she nodded.

"Your granddaughter, Fiona."

The fiery red curls bounced when he/she jumped up and down, suddenly clapping like a fourteen year old on a sugar high. His features shifted again, and took on those of Brand, my long dead brother. I had to hold back a sneer.

"I see him in my dreams a lot. He scares me. Says he's going to going to destroy her." He pointed to his picture of the Unicorn.

I sighed. Dworkin was still out of it. He still didn't know who he, or any of his offspring was. He didn't even know what the Unicorn, the Living Pattern, mother of Oberon, was, or who she was. Dworkin was having nightmares of Patternfall again. I thought they had stopped, but the last nine months, or so, they have returned, with a vengeance. Every night, he tells me. And every night, I don't know what to tell him.

He shifted again, taking on the form of the Pattern itself. I inhaled sharply. This was a new development. Maybe he was beginning to remember?

His voice seemed to come from everywhere at once. _"I also dream of you. I wonder who you are, and why you take such a strange shape. I wonder why, when I see you, I am reminded of these."_ He was apparently talking to himself. But, he shifted to a giant ruby, the shape of the Jewel of Judgment, hanging from a gold chain. Then, to a trump of the Courts of Chaos. The ground was of red soil and rocks, no vegetation. That eerie sky, split down the middle; one side, streaks of billowy colors in the rainbow, constantly churning and changing. The other, night sky, minus the moon, but the stars cavorted and danced. Not twinkled, but moved, as if in some cosmic ballroom. Then, the Unicorn stood before me, cloven hooves pawing at the ground. He changed back to his true form—an elderly man, hunchback, white hair and beard, wrinkled skin, and haunting green eyes, much like my own except they were tempered with so much more experience, I felt like a small child again.

"I don't know who you are. I wish I did. You all seem so nice. Especially you."

He looked at me pleadingly, as if I could restore his memories. I turned, hand on the door.

"What is your name?"

I sighed. I felt helpless. He asked this question every time, for the last nine months. "Corwin," I said, then left.

I sat at the guard's table after my conversation with Random, and awaited the replacement. Random, my brother and King, had no idea what brought on the change. He arrived, and I left for my chambers and let oblivion rule my mind until it was pitch black outside.

It was times like these I wished Ganelon was still with me. Even if he was my father in disguise, he always seemed a good friend, and someone with good ideas. Instead, I went to see my favorite brother.

I found him sitting with Martin and Julian playing poker. His shock of dishwater blond hair was as unkept as always. He might be King, but he was still the runt of the litter, and as unpredictable as his name implied. Julian, though still sat with his impeccable white armor on. I knew very well how tough that armor was—only silver could pierce it; both Random and I had tried shooting him with regular bullets. He looked much like me, a bit thicker, but not as much as Gerard. His icy cold poker face extended to his personality; even with his legendary self control, he was still a shitty poker player.

Random was by far the best poker player in the realm, and I had to admire the way he kept his face completely blank, even with that strait flush he was holding. Martin had nothing on his father when it came to cards.

Martin noted my presence first. "Uncle! It is good to see you."

Neither of my brothers acknowledged me, until after the round, one which Random claimed.

Julian nodded towards me then left the room. Random stood and clasped my shoulder.

"Always a pleasure, brother. However, we have issues we need to discuss. Grab some Bailey's, and we'll head somewhere private."

Nothing more was said until we were at the stables.

"Take Mori. I think he is rather suited to you."

"Which one is that—you seem to have replenished your horses since I was last in need of one." I let a drop of irony fall into the last part.

"Oh, you'll know." He stated.

I looked down the stable and spotted a beautiful steed with a black coat and silver mane and tail.

"He is yours to keep, brother."

We headed off at a good gait, and I recognized where his destination was.

"Wish to impart morbid thoughts into my head?" I asked as we pulled rein at my cenotaph.

"Hardly. It is just that no one frequents here, probably due to them seeing you enough in person."

I had to chuckle at that. "So what is it that you wished to speak about?"

He held up a fragment of something, a shard of a jewel, about two inches long, and kind of an opaque pink-white color.

"What is it?"

"I was hoping you might know. I already consulted Fiona and she had the same reaction I did."

He held it out and I took it from his palm. It felt warm to the touch, and great power radiated out from it. It reminded me of the Unicorn.

"Does it have something to do with the Pattern?"

"I thought that too, and Fi looked at it. She told me it was incomplete—like it was broken off from a larger whole."

"Where did you get it?"

"Merlin. He contacted me via trump. Said some guards were escorting a prisoner to their penal colony, and ran across another outcast, who attacked them. On guard died, but the other killed him and found this inside his body."

I hadn't thought about my son in some time. He was King in The Courts of Chaos, though I knew he didn't want to be. He was just a puppet for that bitch, Dara—his mother, and his older brother Mandor.

I nodded, asking him to continue.

"I don't know, Corwin, but I want you to figure out what this thing is, where it came from, and why the estranged Chaosians have shards of it in the first place."

I nodded again. "Okay, but where is this colony?"

He sighed, and suddenly I felt a sense of foreboding. "On Shadow Earth, where you used to reside. In Japan. Go there and see what you can find. Trump me when you find something."

"Alright, when do you want me to leave?"

He smirked at me. "As soon as you learn Japanese."


	2. Old Friends

It took me a total of three and a half weeks of continuous study to get enough of the language to be able to communicate effectively. My teacher, the head of the Shadow Trading Company, insisted I learn to write it as well. That took another two weeks. Whatever, it was all for the best, I suppose.

"Corwin, remember that it _is_ a penal colony for Chaos, so be careful," Random warned as he handed over the shard. "And keep a close eye on that."

I gave an affirmative nod then turned to walk out.

"Oh, and Corwin, say hello to Bill Roth for me."

I rode Mori at an easy pace as Random had warned me he was not Shadow-broken yet. So I shook the reins and watched as trees in the forest shrank a little… the grass turned a lighter shade of green… flowers of purple smattered here and there… the terrain grew more hilly, though descending… the dirt changed from dark brown to light brown… auburn… maroon… blood red…

I thought about the shard, and what it might mean. Aside from the Jewel of Judgment, I had never seen anything that was so intricately linked with the Pattern. Moreover, I wondered who had made it, or where it had come from.

What if this shard had something to do with Dworkin going mad again? How could something like this cause that, though? The primal Pattern was still intact and as Dad had left it when he fixed it. It was the partial destruction of it what had caused his insanity last time, so that was what Random and I checked first.

I woke from my reverie when I realized where I was: back on Shadow Earth, outside Bill's house. It was twilight, and the lights were still on.

I tethered Mori to a large Maple tree outside in the front, then went to ring the doorbell.

A girl, about sixteen, numerous pierceings in her face, answered and looked me over, her eyebrows raising so high I though her scalp might have consumed them. My renaissance 'costume' was still out of fascion. Black boots, black slacks that flared out after the knee, grey-silver shirt with a lacing tie under the neck, and a black cloak, clasped at the neck with a silver rose. I had shaved my beard and mustache that morning, but my black hair still blended. I had grown accustomed to it during my time serving under Napolion Bonaparte.

"Umm… Can I help you?"

"Does Bill Roth still live here?"

She turned around, facing towards the rest of the house, and yelled, "Daddy, somebody's here to see you."

It took a moment, but when he rounded the corner, he grinned and shook my hand. His hair had turned a bit whiter, and his stomach had filled out a bit. "Corwin! Still coming and going colorfully, I see. How are you? You hungry?"

"Good, and yes I am."

"Daddy, you know him?" the girl asked incredulously.

"Of course! He's an old friend and… somewhat of royalty. Why don't you go and start fixing something with Mom?"

She rounded the corner and disappeared, but sounds from the kitchen soon drifted to us.

"So what brings you by, Corwin?"

I pulled out the jewel fragment.

"Can you tell me anything about this?"

He held it, and scrutinized it. "Well, I can feel power in it, and it reminds me of Amber. Why ask me? I just the Court Lawyer."

I took it and stowed it away again. "Well, it was found in Japan, in the hands of an exiled Chaosian."

His expression changed from mild surprise to jaw-dropped astonishment.

"And," I continued, "Fiona tells me it is only a fragment of a whole."

"Hmm… You don't say? What are you going to do?"

"I'm going to investigate. Japan, apparently, is Chaos' penal colony."

Bill laughed out loud at that. "Oh, and what was a Chaosian, exiled or not, doing with it, if it relates to Amber?"

"I don't know. Since this" I motioned towards my pocket holding the shard, "was found here, I'm going to look for more pieces of it, and hopefully find someone, Chaosian or not, who knows about it."

He looked pensive, and twiddled his thumbs.

His daughter entered then, holding a tray full of sausage, pancakes, and eggs, while his wife, Alice, followed with two mugs and a pitcher of lemonade. We ate in silence for fifteen minutes or so.

"I could try to see if this jewel is on display anywhere. Maybe it has even turned up in a property dispute."

"Good idea. Get some guys working on it, and I'll have Random work out some sort of salary for them, and you. I need you in Amber, though, once I get to Japan. Random will have to know how things are going."

"This could take a while, couldn't it?"

I sighed. "I hope not, but it might. Why?"

"Well, could you have my family sent there? I don't want to be away from them over-long."

"Alright. Later, tell them what is going on, and I'll get ahold of somebody in Amber. Might as well get them there tonight. Oh, and you might want someone to take care of your house."

He nodded. "Will they need anything?"

I shook my head. "They will be provided for."

"Corwin, how is everything at Amber? You look more tired than when I last saw you."

I shook my head. "Dworkin has gone mad again. He doesn't remember who he is. Only bits and pieces of things." I ate a sausage, trying to collect my thoughts. "Random is still king. Mostly everyone is in Amber, though Llewella still spends most of her time in Rebma, but she is seen in Amber. Merlin's still king in Chaos. No new deaths." I tried to think of any significant news.

"Do you know why Dworkin's gone mad again?"

"No clue. Random and I checked the Pattern first thing. He's been this way for nine months, Amber time… About two years, here."

He nodded, and finished off the lemonade. "What about Fiona, Brand and Flora?"

"Fi is the unofficial Court Sorceress, Brand is dead, and Flora doesn't do much of anything except flirt with the guards."

"Well, I'm going to go tell my family to get ready."

He exited the room, and I pulled out my trumps, and found Random's. Contact came after a few moments.

"Who?"

"Me. Bill and I are going to Japan tonight, so he can get some people checking up on this jewel shard. I am going to send him to you after he's got people on it, though, so he can keep you updated. He wants his family there with him, in case this takes a long time."

"Alright. Send them through Flora—I'll have them shown to rooms. Anything else?"

"No."

"Bye then. Good luck." And then his presence was gone, like he hung up the phone.

I shuffled out Flora's card. I thought about her, and all those years she kept tabs on me while I was on this Shadow. At the time, I hadn't known who I was; Eric, my elder brother, long dead, had exiled me here, during the height Black Death. I survived it, but caused total amnesia. It wasn't until six hundred years later that I began regaining memory. Random had helped me, guided me to Rebma to walk the reverse Pattern. He was not welcome there, due to… past wrongs, and was forced to marry Vialle as punishment. Generally, one is not liked if one runs off with the queen's daughter, knocks her up, then leaves her. The poor girl returned to Rebma, had Martin, then committed suicide.

Contact came after about five minutes. She was standing in the dining hall, next to Julian. She smiled when she saw me.

"Corwin."

"Yes, dear sister?" I said, somewhat mockingly.

"Random told me we are to have visitors?"

"Yes—I'll be sending them to you in a moment."

I walked to the family room.

"Everyone's ready," Bill told me.

I motioned for them to advance. The girl was first. She looked terribly confused, but didn't comment on it.

"Take my hand and step forward," Flora stated as she extended her own.

The girl did as instructed. Alice and the son soon followed.

Bill came around, and kissed his wife through the card, then waved. "You all be good, and I'll be there before too long, okay?"

They nodded, then I pressed my hand on the trump, instantly severing contact.

I turned to Bill as I replaced my pack. "You have someone to look after the house?"

He nodded. "Yeah. When do we leave?"

"Now."

We both rode Mori for a few minutes, until I could call up a horse for Bill. A mare, chestnut colored, satteled and tethered to a tree. Bill called her Clove.

We rode on in companionable silence for a while, until Bill sighed.

"What is it?"

"Well, you remember, years ago, when I asked you to tell me about what you were doing, off in Amber?"

"Yes."

"You couldn't then, because of time, but will you now? We seem to have a long ride ahead of us."

"I suppose." I agreed. "After I came here last, looking for the Jewel of Judgment in my old haystack…"


	3. Introductions

It took us a full two days to get to Japan through Shadow. I took the pace slow so I could tell him my story.

"So Merlin, your son, is king of Chaos now?" He sounded impressed.

"Yes, but it seems he is but a mere puppet. He never wanted it, anyways, I don't think."

We rode on, and the lights of Tokyo were brightening with each step.

"Well, I will part with you here." I handed him my trump. "Concentrate on this when you are ready to go to Amber. Image it is really me on that card. You should have plenty of money on you. See you later."

With that, he nodded, then turned Clove off towards Tokyo. I went a different direction, preferring to skirt the city and send Mori back to Amber before I went on.

Before too long, I came across a large building in the clearing of a forest. It was twilight again, and the lights were on. I pulled out Martin's trump, and studied it.

"Uncle?"

"Can you take my horse, Mori? I won't be needing him for a while."

"Sure."

I handed Martin the reins, then slapped Mori's rump just hard enough to get him to move forward.

"Bye." And he was gone.

I stopped at the edge of the clearing, and smoked a cigarette, observing the place. It looked to be a church or something.

As I was putting out the butt, a young woman, pale skin, black hair—so dark it was almost blue—came out of the doors at the top of gargantuan staircase. She carried a yellow backpack, and wore a short green skirt and a long sleeved white shirt. Her outfit reminded me of a sailor's uniform.

A flash of read near the tallest tree caught my attention. A man with long, silvery hair, dressed in a billowing red outfit had just jumped from one of the top branches. He landed gracefully like it was nothing. I figured he must be a Chaosian. No human could survive that.

"Oi, wench! You ready to go _yet_?" the man barked at her.

"Inuyasha, I was only gone two days!"

"Well, come on already."

"I'm coming, I'm coming."

They headed towards a small building that reminded me of one of those old fashioned outhouses. Curiosity got the better of me, and I followed, hoping to learn something from these two.

I entered the building, and found it to be a well house. They were nowhere insight, and I was surprised by the soft pink light coming from the bottom of the square well; it was exactly like the afterimage of someone trumping out.

Without a second thought, I jumped in after them.

"What in the name of Kami do I smell?" bellowed the man. He was already outside of the well, but instead of it being enclosed, it was out in the open, in a clearing. He peered over the edge of the well and I heard him growl.

"Who the hell are you?"

I climbed out of the well. "Corwin."

"How did you pass through—"

"Inuyasha, he's got a jewel shard!"

He immediately drew his sword—much bigger than its scabbard, and it looked very white instead of metallic like I expected.

I drew Grayswandir. "You wish to spar, do you?"

"Give it up!"

"Inuyasha, SIT!"

I was amazed when the lad went face down in the dirt.

"I'm sorry about his bad manners. Could you tell me why you have a shard of the Shikon Jewel?"

I dropped Grayswandir in its place, then pulled out the fragment. "This?"

She nodded.

"You seem to know more about it than I do." Said I.

I noticed the glass vial about her neck—it contained four more pieces just like the one in my hand.

"What do you know about it?" Kagome asked.

"I believe it may have something to do with my family. Other than that, nothing." I didn't want to give up more information than I had to.

"Who is this _family _of yours?" Inuyasha bit in, as he was pulling himself out of the dirt.

I ignored him. "I was hoping you might be able to tell me about it, as you seem to know about it."

The girl looked at Inuyasha.

"Kagome, I don't trust him."

I could see this wasn't going to help. They didn't trust me, and they had no reason to. I decided to play their game.

"I have a proposition."

Inuyasha scowled at me, but held his tongue, probably fearing another sitting.

"I will give you my piece, as long you tell me about it, and include me in whatever you are about concerning it." I held out the shard.

Again, she looked to the strange-looking man.

"I could just take it from him."

That earned him a glare. "Inuyasha, I don't trust him either, but he said he'd help, and he'll hand over the shard. I don't see what choice we have. I don't want to hurt him."

He growled again, but nodded.

"Alright." She took the shard from me and placed it with the others. "What do you want to know?"

"Everything you do."

"The Shikon no Tama is a very powerful relic which demons can use to amplify their power, even just a shard of it is significant. It used to be whole, but some time ago it was shattered—"

"By you, no less!"

"Sit!"

Inuyasha ate dirt again.

"It was shattered, and now Inuyasha and me and a few others are collecting the shards."

"I see. And how did you know I had a piece?"

"I can sense it. I'm a miko."

Miko? I wracked my brains. Some obscure word that my tutor hadn't taught me. I feigned knowledge. "Ahh. How did this jewel come about?"

"None of your busi—"

"SIT! A miko named Moridiko once fought many demons. She got into a battle she couldn't win, so she trapped their souls, as well as her own, into this jewel."

But what did that have to do with Amber? Ah well. I'd figure it out later, but in the meantime…

"Is there any serious competition for this jewel?"

"A demon named Naraku," Kagome started; she was cut off by a growl from Inuyasha.

"Killed the woman guarding it," she continued, "and tried to steal it, fifty years ago. He now has about half the jewel, and is trying to get more."

"How was it shattered?"

Inuyasha cleared his throat. Well, before the woman died, she pinned Inuyasha to that tree over there," she pointed at the tree he had been in earlier, "with a Sacred Arrow, and put him in an unnatural sleep. I fell through the well, and stumbled upon him. I freed him, and he tried to kill me, saying I had the jewel."

I raised my eyebrows at this, wondering what happened inbetween then and now.

"It had been inside my body my whole life. I didn't even know it was real until it came out here," she prodded a place on her side, "Inuyasha and I got into a fight, and a crow demon stole it, and started to fly off. I shot it with an arrow, trying to get the jewel back. It killed the crow, but shattered the jewel."

I nodded. "So, how did the pieces get scattered?"

"When it shattered, they flew to all over Japan."

"We need to get back to Kaede's village. Can you keep up with me?" Inuyasha broke in.

"Yes."

He crouched down enough so Kagome could climb on his back. I raised an eyebrow but said nothing. He nodded to me, then started running. I easily caught up.

Within moments, we came across a village—traditional style housing, from the feudal era.

We entered a hut on the outskirts. Inside rested an elderly lady, who was missing her right eye, a young woman, probably no older than seventeen, a young monk, a small, two-tailed cat, and a boy with auburn hair and a fluffy tail—who came barreling towards Kagome.

"Did you miss me? And who is this?"

She chuckled. "Yes, Shippou, I missed you."

The others eyed me warily.

"This is Corwin. He will be traveling with us."

"Ye be hunting for the jewel as well?" queried the old lady.

"In a manner of speaking, I am. At the moment, thought, it is purely curiosity."

"It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance." The monk bowed towards me. "I am Miroku, a humble servant of Buddha. This is Sango," he motioned towards the young woman, "demon exterminator and her fire-cat, Kirara. Kagome is holding Shippou—a fox demon. The priestess is Kaede. I'm assuming you know Inuyasha."

Something was bugging me about the monk. He reminded me of someone, but I couldn't quite put my finger on wh—

"You sure do have a strange accent, and weird clothes!" Shippou commented.

I chuckled. "I am not from around here."

Miroku raised an eyebrow, but he didn't question me.

Introductions seemed to be over as Miroku turned to Inuyasha. "A messenger came today, asking for help with a sudden rise of demons to the west of here. I think we should go."

"We leave tomorrow at dawn." Inuyasha decided.

I nodded, then stepped outside into the dying light, intent on smoking a cigarette. Miroku followed me out.

"Inuyasha does not trust you."

"I am aware of this."

"It does not surprise me. Don't let it worry you. He will warm up to you before too long."

I pulled out some Marlboros and a lighter.

"What are those?"

"Tobacco." I offered him one, which he declined.

I lit it and took a long drag, watching the smoke spiral up.

"Whatever that is, it STINKS!" Inuyasha snapped from inside the hut.

I walked away from the hut. "Can you tell me any more about this shard hunt we're on?"

He gave a long suffering sigh. "Well…"

He spoke and I listened.


	4. Explanations

—Miroku POV—

I can't say that I trusted him much either. But we had no good reason to refuse his aid.

"Are you aware of the origins of the jewel?"

"Something about a priestess trapping demon souls in it," my companion replied.

I studied him before I continued. Black hair, much like my own, strong build. He looked like he was almost twice my age. He wore a sword at his hip, shorter but broader than Inuyasha's Tetsusiaga scabbard. Corwin wore the strangest clothes—a greyish, loose-fitting long-sleeved shirt with cuffs in black, pants that were significantly more form-hugging than Inuyasha's hakama, and they flared out after the knees instead of closing around the ankle; however, they were made of a very durable fabric. His shoes were stiff-looking, and probably uncomfortable. Also, he sported a black cloak, clasped at the neck with a silver flower of some sort.

It was his eyes that caught me off guard—emerald, and they seemed to burn of a fire all their own.

"You are aware of its effect on demons then as well?"

"Yes."

"Since its creation, a single priestess has been guarding it. When she dies, her reincarnation takes her place." I sighed, then glanced about to ensure certain ears were not eavesdropping. "Fifty years ago, a woman named Kikyo was guarding it. Inuyasha fell in love with her, but since he is a half-demon, it could not be.

"She wanted him to purity the jewel by wishing on it to become a full human, so they could live together in peace.

"During this time, however, Kikyo nursed a bandit, Onigumo, who had been badly burned. Onigumo fell in love with Kikyo, and swore she would be his. So, he sold his flesh to demons, and became Naraku." I could not help the blatant distain dripping on that last word.

Corwin simply nodded, urging me to continue.

"Naraku tricked both Inuyasha and Kikyo into believing they had betrayed one another. Naraku killed Kikyo, but not before she sealed Inuyasha to Goshinboku, the God Tree. He remained there for fifty years, while the Jewel was buried with Kikyo.

"That's when Kagome passed through the well, and stumbled upon the unconscious hanyou. She freed him.

"Kagome and Kikyo look much alike, due to Kagome being Kikyo's reincarnation. Kagome was born with the sacred jewel of four souls inside her.

"When Inuyasha saw her, he thought she was Kikyo and tried to kill her. Kaede, Kikyo's younger sister, put the Katadoka rosary on Inuyasha to save her. It only responds to Kagome. I'm sure you saw its power already?"

He nodded, and chuckled.

"I am uncertain of how exactly the jewel was shattered, but I understand it was from one of Kagome's arrows. She and Inuyasha have been searching for the shards the longest. All of us in our group have something against Naraku, except for Shippou. He was orphaned by the Thunder Brothers. Sango came from a village of demon exterminators, but Naraku controlled her little brother and slaughtered them all, save for her. And it wasn't from lack of trying, I can assure you. The scars on her back testify to that…"

I had to breathe, to calm down. Just the thought of what Naraku had done to Sango out me in a rage, though I dare not show it, especially to this stranger. After a few moments, I continued. "I myself was cursed with my Kazaana." Involuntarily, I stared at my right palm.

"Wind tunnel?"

"Yes. While it is a great weapon, someday it will suck me in, just like my father's did, and just like my grandfather's did."

It had been bothering me for some time, now. Something about this man was different. He seemed somehow familiar, but I was certain I had never met him. Corwin emanated pure power, and I was glad he was not my enemy. I wondered how strong he truly was.

I felt him studying me as I did the same to him. He seemed satisfied, though, and nodded.

"Kagome said as much, except about your wind tunnel. Tell me more about this Naraku character."

"He is sly and devious, and uses his puppets and incarnations," Corwin raised his eyebrow, and looked confused. "The puppets are not real, but they can do a lot of damage. He uses them, while he hides in his castle. The incarnations are a part of himself, which he controls.

"Now, I've told you a lot. I am curious about you."

The man smiled. "I come from a very distant place, where my brother is King. What all do you want to know?"

I thought; this man seemed loathe to reveal much about himself except the vague specifics. I would have to ask the right questions.

"Why are you really interested in the jewel?"

He seemed to measure his words carefully. "It relates somehow to my family. I don't know how yet, but I'm here to find out. I know only what you and Kagome have told me about the Jewel."

"How does it relate to your family?"

"I don't know, exactly. However, it is somehow intertwined with something I call the Pattern, sort of a family heirloom."

I could tell he was either lying, or holding back a significant amount of information. I decided to not probe further with the pattern. It would not do any good to aggravate him.

"I see you carry a sword on you. You are a fighter?"

He chuckled. "In a manner of speaking, yes. I am skilled, and I have killed many men and other things, but I am not a hunter by profession."

I wondered why the king's brother would be doing such work. If he was royalty, why was he here, 'investigating'?

"We should rest. Tomorrow will not be easy." I watched him walk into the hut again, then I followed suit.


	5. Entrances and Exits

—Corwin POV—

I woke to the sound of a woman calling my name, which is never a bad way to wake up. My eyelids fluttered open, and when my vision cleared, I saw Kagome kneeling next to me, trying to rouse me.

"You ready to go yet?" Inuyasha caustically queried.

I strapped Grayswandir onto my left hip, then nodded curtly, while I blinked the last of sleep out of my eyes.

We stepped outside, and I saw Kirara morph into a much larger cat, then Sango and Miroku board her.

Inuyasha crouched like before, and held Kagome. He glared at me, his golden eyes boring into my emerald ones. "You had better be able to keep up, insert vile name here , or else we'll leave you in the dust!"

"Inuyasha! Be nice."

"Don't defend him, wench! We don't even know who he reall—"

"HENTAI!" Sango screeched right before she slapped Miroku so hard he fell off Kirara.

I coughed to hide my chuckles.

"Sango, my sweet—I was only—"

"Save it for someone who cares," she shot back at him.

He climbed back onto Kirara, though silently.

"Quit playing around and let's go already, dammit!" Inuyasha barked to all of us. He took off sprinting, and Kirara leapt into the air. I ran, and had no trouble keeping pace with my most irritable companion; I matched him for a few moments, then turned and smirked. "Is this all you've got, Demon?" I shot past him, and waited for him to rush past me.

"Not hardly, vile nickname here !"

We kept this one-upping until lunchtime, when Kagome started dropping hints about being hungry.

"Oi, wench! You just ate."

"Inuyasha, that was hours ago, and _some_ of us need nutrition."

"Fine. You, Sango, and the Lecher look for some food. I'll stay here with and get stuff ready."

They all nodded, then headed off together.

He turned to me. "You! What the hell are you? No normal human can run that far, that fast without have to stop. You haven't even broken a sweat! Tell me now, or Kami help me, I'll make kindling out of your ass!"

I scoffed at that. "You, cut me down? I think not. Even should you be stronger—which I highly doubt—I am far older and more experienced than you. I need not explain myself to the likes of you!"

Dammit all to Chaos! Someone chose right then to Trump me, while a fuming hanyou glared daggers at me, but shut his mouth when I turned to the side and spoke in Thari.

"Picked a hell of a time, Bill," said I.

"Well, I'm ready to go to Amber. Julian is in Japan, to be the contact there."

"How did you get that bastard to help… Never mind, it isn't important. Come on through."

"What in the hells is going on?" demanded the confused and irate half-demon when he saw Bill materialize in-front of me.

Bill looked at Inuyasha, then to me. "Here's your trump back. Who's this?"

"Ignore him. We need you in Amber." I pulled out Random's card.

I felt contact, and saw Random in the library. Just the sight of the endless number of books calmed me. I always did like libraries.

"Is he ready to come through?"

"Yeah. I'm sending him now."

Inuyasha growled audibly when Bill disappeared.

"Random, so far, I found a group searching for the Jewel shards. Apparently there are lots of shards, possibly thousands."

He raised his eyebrows in surprise, but waited for me to continue.

"I'm going to try to find out more. The jewel came from a priestess named Moridiko. Their main rival for the shards is a demon named Naraku."

"Alright. I want you to find out more about this 'Naraku', as well as the priestess. If she is one of us in disguise, we need to know how she made it, and what is has to do with the Pattern."

I nodded.

Random idly scratched his chin, then nodded as if he came to some decision. "Good. Find out all you can. If you need reinforcements, don't hesitate. I'll tell Benedict to be on alert."

"Tell Fiona too. I think she may know more about this jewel thing than she's saying."

"Doesn't surprise me one bit. She always was a bitch. A smart bitch, too. Need anything else?"

I shook my head, then passed my hand over the card, and placed it back with the others.

"Sango, Kagome, and Miroku had arrived to see Bill disappear, and were currently standing jaw-agape.

"I think you owe us an explanation." Miroku pressed.

I sighed. I didn't particularly want to clue them in this early, but I didn't see what choice I had. "You all had better sit down for this…"


	6. Chaos and Amber

"I am Corwin, of Amber. Amber is the one true place, Substance, if you will. All else, including here, is Shadow. Imagine a set of mirrors, where each one reflects that of the one before it, but where something is askew in it. If one goes far enough out, the shadows go mad; beyond that is the Courts of Chaos. At their edge is the Abyss—Nothing. It is the end of the universe."

I paused to let this sink in. "The Courts of Chaos is Substance itself, but of a different nature. It is derived from something called the Logrus—the essence of Chaos. Amber is from the Pattern—the essence of Order.

"My grandfather created the Pattern of Amber in a revolt against Chaos. That is a tale in and of itself. But, he used a talisman, the Jewel of Judgment in Amber, the Eye of the Serpent in Chaos, to create it.

"Those of the Royal house of Amber who have walked the Pattern have power over Shadow."

They all looked a bit confused still.

"Imagine holding what you have in one hand, and what you want in the other. We Amberites can add and subtract things from the world to get in closer alignment with what we want. That is Shadowshifting."

"I am of the royal house. My father, Oberon, reigned in Amber for millennia. Until recently, I cannot remember a time when he did _not _rule. However, some years ago, a handful of my siblings set out to overthrow him. One of them wished to completely destroy the Pattern and create it anew. He was insane. He did manage to mar it, though. Oberon used the Jewel of Judgment to fix it, but it killed him. My brother Random now rules Amber, while my son, Merlin, is king in the Courts of Chaos."

This last statement caused a few eyebrows to rise, but they all held their tongue, hoping for me to continue.

I thought of Deirdre, then, and almost cried. Inuyasha sniffed the air, and gave me a strange look.

"The trumps" I pointed to my pack of cards they had seen earlier, "are a way of communication and teleportation. They are similar to a telephone." I noted looks of recognition on Inuyasha and Kagome's faces, but not on the others. "The main difference is that they are capable of transporting one person to wherever the other is, or just passing items. That is how Bill came and went."

"So how does this relate to the Shikon Jewel?" Kagome asked.

"I and several siblings concur—it is directly related to the Pattern of Amber. None of us know how, or why, but—"

"And how do we know you aren't running us a line of crap?" spoke Inuyasha.

"It does seem rather farfetched." Agreed Miroku.

"It's crazy if you ask me." Shippou added.

"At the moment, you will just have to trust me." I didn't feel like a long walk through Shadow, and we had more pressing matters as it was. Namely the Shikon Jewel shards.

Inuyasha snorted.

"That's asking quite a bit." Sango noted.

Everyone was quite for a moment. I suppose it was not everyday someone told you the world was but an insignificant part of a whole. I let them think on it.

"How many siblings do you have?" Shippou asked, rather suddenly.

"Hmm… at least twenty that I know of, though five, maybe more, are dead."

"Twenty!" they cried in unison.

"Those are just the ones I am aware of. And that's just siblings, not aunts or uncles, nieces or nephews, or… grandchildren."

"It's amazing your mother didn't die of a heart attack raising all those kids!" Sango murmured.

"Uh... Most of us don't share the same mother."

Inuyasha looked quite confused. "Don't your kind take mates?"

"Mates?" I had to laugh at that. "Maybe for the night. My family isn't exactly known for fidelity."

Miroku raised his eyebrows. "So what are you known for?"

_THUNK!_

"Hentai." Sango muttered as she removed her giant boomerang from Miroku's head.

"DAMMIT!" Inuyasha cut in, silencing my chuckles.

"What is it?" Shippou asked, wide eyed.

"I smell that bastard brother of mine!"


	7. Duel with a Demon

Inuyasha was already standing, sword drawn, waiting for him. I stood off near the edge, my hand resting on Grayswandir.

"So, little brother, you still travel with these," he waived towards the others, "humans." He stated with a sneer.

"What do you want, Bastard?"

I watched. The newcomer had yet to notice me. I studied him, trying to remember who he was. His soft facial features belied a hard coldness of attitude. His hair, like his brother's, was silvery, almost white, though his looked a bit more bluish. He was tall, and held himself with a regal air. Was he some kind or royal—

This must be Swayvill's son to Dara! The one Merlin had expelled from Chaos after he took reign. He did that because… It did not make sense that he would throw out this man and not the dead king's other son, Mandor, born of the same woman, the mother of my son, unless he did it to spite that conniving bitch, or more likely, he was a rival for the throne.

The elder brother's almost bored but icy voice cut through my thoughts.

"This Sesshoumaru need not bent to the likes of…" He trailed off when he noticed me. "YOU!" he cried, and his eyes turned red.

The others gasped when Sesshoumaru lost his self-control.

He turned to face me, and I noticed his left arm was absent. I laughed at him then.

"The great heir of Chaos! How sad your current state. Displaced by your half-brother, then driven from Substance! And somewhere along the way, you managed to lose an appendage. How quaint!" I mocked him, this, the former heir apparent, in such a sorry state.

I could almost see the steam curl up from his scalp.

"SILENCE! That son of yours is no brother of mine!" he hissed.

"Is he saying your son is his half-brother?" Sango nearly screeched.

I nodded, without glancing away from Sesshoumaru. I wondered, though. Since these two were brothers—half by their looks—why did they hate each other so? I'm not one to disclaim family rivalries or sibling animosity—there is plenty of that in Amber—I just wondered at the reason. Also, which parent did they share? I made a mental not to ask Merlin.

"How does it feel, knowing I am your great-to-some-power uncle?" I taunted.

The discussion seemed closed when he drew one of the two swords at his hip.

Inuyasha reacted first, charging Sesshoumaru in an attack with no clear style and total lack of finesse. Sesshoumaru batted him aside as if here were an annoying fly, sending him face down into the dirt.

"This is not your fight, weakling, so stay out of it." Sesshoumaru's normal demeanor had returned, and he said this as with no more weight than one would place on a comment about the weather, but his eyes still were crimson.

I drew Grayswandir, and waited for his attack. He swung a simple blow, attempting to use brute force against me. I blocked and parried, then, followed through with a feign in _sixte_, a feign in _quarte_, then a head cut. He managed to block before his head went flying. Pity.

"You seem to possess no more finesse than your fiery brother."

Inuyasha had risen by then, and tensed at my barb. Although it had not been directed solely at him, he still took offense. I heard a growl develop in his throat.

"To which brother do you refer, Son of Oberon?"

"What do you mean, which brother?" Inuyasha cut in.

We both ignored him. Sesshoumaru tried a stop-thrust.

"Pick one, any one, except Merlin."

I attempted a fancy maneuver I had picked up while I lived in France. I had used it successfully on my late brother Eric, and it worked just as well with this arrogant bastard.

A large trail of blood chased my sword from where I had cut him on the wrist. I increased my pace significantly, hoping the injury and the tempo would either slow him or scare him. It did the trick, and he began fighting a defensively, not taking any openings.

I smirked. "You honestly thought to duel me and live?" I decided o try a mental barrage as well, as I had with Eric. "That wound is slowing you. I wonder if the feeling of your dripping blood is disconcerting… distracting? Oh, and your little brother which you so pretend to abhor, seeing you like this, unable to hold your own. It must be quite embarrassing."

"Shut the hell up! Or so help me…"

He started to lose his temper again, and tried a sloppy head-cut. It almost cost him his remaining arm.

"By the Serpent, I'll—"

"You'll what? Cut me down? You've already proven you can't. At least not in a fair duel. Slit my throat while I sleep? A coward's—"

"I am not a coward!"

He began drawing me into the forest, back the way he came, probably in hopes to hinder my movement. It did, but not enough. His carefully constructed demeanor was in shambles, and his rage showed clearly on his face. He continued backing, though, as if going somewhere. It struck me that he might be fleeing.

"Running away, are you?"

I was vaguely aware of the other following and watching, but not interfering.

"This Sesshoumaru does not 'run'."

I caught sight of his target: a two headed dragon with an imp and a young girl sitting. The girl held flowers, but dropped them when she saw her master's flustered state.

He ran, then, jumping aboard with amazing speed. The thing took off, and his reply reached my ears as he disappeared above the treetops: "Self-preservation."


	8. Relativity

I turned back to my companions as I sheathed Grayswandir. Their looks of amazement were almost comical. I grinned. "Been a while since I've had a descent duel."

"Amazing…" Sango murmured.

Kagome seemed to snap out of her Corwin-induced trance, and dug into her bag for a towel. The forty-five minute fight had me working up a sweat to make a insert sweaty animal here jealous.

"I thought only demons possessed that amount of stamina," Miroku commented.

"All creatures of Substance tend to."

"I thought this was Shadow?" Shippou asked, confusion twisting his small face.

I handed back the towel.

"This place is, yes. 'Demons', as you call them, are not. This is the Courts of Chaos penal colony."

"Then why am I here?" both Shippou and Inuyasha queried.

"Shippou, probably one of your ancestors was outcast, possibly centuries ago. You though," I looked Inuyasha square in the eyes, "are here for more… political reasons, same as your brother."

"Political reasons?"

I sighed. "You and Sesshoumaru share the same father?"

He nodded slowly, not catching where I was going.

"Your father, Swayvill, was king of Chaos before Patternfall, when my son displaced him."

"How is your son related to all this?" Sango asked.

"My son and Sesshoumaru share the same mother."

"So your son isn't any relation of Inuyasha's?" Kagome asked.

"No."

"Do I have any other brothers?"

I nodded. "Jurt and Mandor, though they are both asses. Sorry, kid. You got born into a family of shitheads."

"Wait—while you two were fighting," Sango nodded towards Sesshoumaru's direction, "you called yourself his 'great-to-some-power uncle'. How does that work?"

"Lady Dara, his mother, is my brother's great, great granddaughter."

I had to laugh at Inuyasha's show of disgust, and Miroku's surprise. The others were still trying to wrap their minds around my dysfunctional family.

"Eww!" Shippou complained when he figured it out.

"Talk about robbing the cradle!" Kagome added.

"We've wasted enough time already—let's go!" Inuyasha bit in.

"Hold up—I want a horse after than." I pulled out Martin's trump. Slowly, it came to life. He was drumming with Random; Inuyasha flattened his ears at the racket.

"Uncle!"

"I'm going to need Mori again…"

The two days or so it took us to reach the village passed by uneventfully. None of my companions spoke much more than a few words to me, and I could tell they were still wary and distrustful of me. The village itself seemed just like the old woman's, except the peasants avoided Inuyasha.

I caught Miroku ogling at practically every female. Sango seemed upset by his lecherous behavior—he had very red, very fresh handprints on both cheeks, and a lump on his scalp from Sango's boomerang, which I learned was referred to as 'Hirakotsu', or "come, flying, bone". Very fitting for the thing—it was made from the remains of a 'centipede demon'.

The Hentai monk was good for something besides drooling, though. He stopped at the richest-looking house and 'exorcised' the place. It really surprised me, as it was a Pattern ghost he summoned. A simple special effect for those of us in Amber, but an impossible feat for a shadow-thing. So this was a brother… He did it with such ease, though, that I wandered what he could do _after _walking the pattern. Only two of my siblings, the Sorceress Fiona or the mad, but thankfully dead Brand, could do such a thing. Even Fi would have more trouble with it than Miroku did.

The troublemakers turned out to be low-class Chaosians, who were probably exiled for murder or robbery. It did not matter.

I heard Inuyasha yell "Wind Scar!" immediately before a flash of light erupted behind me. I turned to see two of the Snake Youkai turn to dust and disappear.

"Kazaana!" Miroku cried, and three of them were sucked into Oblivion.

I decapitated two in a single swipe, then split a third down the middle, from its ugly head to its excessively long tail. All three turned to ash.

I pivoted just in time to see Kagome's arrow fly towards the final serpent. I knew she was a priestess, but what caught me off guard was the power of the arrow. The Pattern itself was wrapped around it!

First Miroku, now this girl. How many of us were hiding here, anyways?


	9. Dreams, Nightmares, and Ghosts

That night, I dreamt of Lorraine and the black circle.

I awoke suddenly, the image of the long dead goat-thing fresh in my mind.

"Why do you strive with me? It was you who gave us this passage, this way…"

His long-lost words brought back memories of what my blood-curse had done. I shuddered, and tried to push back the memories, but they came back with a vengeance. Sitting up, I rested my forehead on my cupped hands, and tried to fight the flood of memories, to no avail. They assaulted me anyways.

_It hurled its blade at me, point forward, like a thunderbolt. And the sound of its passage came like a clap of thunder. The elements outside the tower echoed it, a deafening response._

_With Grayswandir, I parried the blade as though it were an ordinary thrust. It embedded itself in the floor and burst into flames. Without, the lightning responded._

_For an instant, the light was blinding as a magnesium flare, and in that moment the creature was upon me._

_It pinned my arms to my sides, and its horns struck against my visor, once, twice…_

_Then I threw my strength against those arms, and their grip began to weaken._

_I dropped Grayswandir, and with a final heave broke the hold it had upon me._

_In that moment, however, our eyes met._

_Then we both struck, and we both reeled back._

"_Lord of Amber," it said then, "why do you strive with me? It was you who gave us this passage, this way…"_

"_I regret a rash act and seek to undo it."_

"_Too late—and this is a strange place to begin."_

_It struck again, so quickly that it got through my guard. I was slammed back against the wall. Its speed was deadly._

_And then it raised its hand and made a sign, and I had a vision of the Courts of Chaos came upon me—a vision that made my hackles rise, made a chill wind blow across my soul, to know what I had done._

"…_You see?" it was saying, "You gave us this Gateway. Help us now, and we will restore to you that which is yours."_

_I climbed the tower to the room that housed the big light, spyglass at my side. I moved to the window facing the shore and focused on the valley._

_There was a mist hanging over the wood. It was a cold, gray, wet-looking thing that clung to the tops of the small, gnarly trees. The trees were dark and their branches twisted together like fingers of wrestling hands. Dark things darted among them, and from the patterns of their flight, I knew they were not birds. There was something evil present in that great wood, I knew, and then I recognized it. It was myself._

_I had done this thing with my curse. I had transformed the peaceful Valley of Garnath into what it now represented: it was a symbol of my hate for Eric and for all those who had stood by and let him get away with his power grab, let him blind me. I didn't like the looks of that forest, and as I stared at it I realized how my hate had objectified itself. I knew it because it was a part of me._

_I had created a new entranceway into the real world. Garnath was now a pathway through Shadows. Shadows dark and grim. Only the dangerous, the malicious might walk that pathway. This was the source of the _things _Rein had mentioned, the things that troubled Eric. Good—in a way—if they kept him occupied. But as I swung the glass, I couldn't escape the feeling that I had done a very bad thing indeed… I realized that I'd unleashed a thing that would take an awful lot of undoing… I had done a thing which had never been done before, not during the whole of Oberon's reign: I had opened a new way to Amber. And I had opened it only to the worst… If I won out in Amber one day, I might have to cope with my own handiwork, which is always a devilish thing to attempt. I lowered the glass and sighed._

_So be it, I decided. In the meantime, it would give Eric something to have insomnia over._

_As I drew nearer, I saw that it was as I had suspected. He had been kneeling to tend an injured man who rested upon the ground. It was Eric._

_I nodded to Gerard as I came up beside him and I looked down at Eric. My feelings were quite mixed. The blood from his several chest wounds was very bright and there was a lot of it. The Jewel of Judgment, which still hung on a chain about his neck, was covered with it. Eerily, it continued its faint, glowing pulsation, heart-like beneath the gore. Eric's eyes were closed, his head resting upon a rolled-up cloak. His breathing was labored._

_I knelt, unable to take my eyes off that ashen face. I tried to push my hate aside just a little, since he was obviously dying, so that I might have a better chance to understand this man who was my brother for the moments that remained in him. I found that I could muster up something of sympathy by considering all that he was losing along with his life and wondering whether it would have been me lying there if I had come out on top five years earlier. I tried to think of something in his favor, and all I could come up with were the epitaph-like words, _He died fighting for Amber_. That was something, though. The phrase kept running through my mind._

_His eyes tightened, flickered, opened. His face remained without expression as his eyes focused on mine. I wondered whether he even recognized me._

_But he said my name, and then, "I knew that it would be you." He paused for a couple of breaths and went on, "They saved you some trouble, didn't they?"_

_I did not reply. He already knew the answer._

"_Your turn will come one day," he continued. "Then we will be peers." He chuckled and realized too late that he should not have. He went into an unpleasant spasm of moist coughing. When it passed, he glared at me._

"_I could feel your curse," he said. "All around me. The whole time. You didn't even have to die to make it stick."_

_Then, as if reading my thoughts, he smiled faintly and said, "No, I'm not going to give you my death curse. I've reserved that for the enemies of Amber—out there." He gestured with his eyes. He pronounced it then, in a whisper, and I shuddered to overhear it._

"_Long live the king!" cried the nobles, three times._

_Then Eric leaned forward and whispered to me, "Your eyes have looked upon the fairest sight they will ever behold… Guards! Take Corwin away to the smithy, and let his eyes be burned from his head! Let him remember the sights of this day as the last he might ever see! Then cast him into the darkness of the deepest dungeon beneath Amber, and let his name be forgotten!"_

_I have no idea how much later it was that I awakened within absolute blackness and felt the terrible pains within my head. Perhaps it was then that I pronounced the curse, or perhaps it had been at the time when the white hot irons had descended. I don't remember. But I knew that Eric would not rest easy upon the throne, for the curse of a prince of Amber, pronounced in a fullness of fury, is always potent._

_I clawed at the straw, in the absolute blackness of my cell, and no tears came. That was the horror if it. After a time—only you and I, gods, know how long—sleep came again._

I screamed, and snapped out of my trance, and touched my eyeballs to ensure they were still there. Miroku, who had been on guard duty, ran to me to see what disturbed me. At first glance, I thought him to be Ganelon, and addressed him as such in Thari. I was hyperventilating, and tears streamed unnoticed from my green orbs.

He slapped me then, not too had but enough to draw my attention. I noticed the other had awoken, most likely to my scream, and stared, on in Inuyasha's case, glared at me.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" Inuyasha practically shouted, right in my face.

I measured my words carefully, "just… ghosts from my past, come back to haunt me." My mind was rational again, and I had control of my breathing.

"Ghosts from your past, indeed… Brother." An oily voice drawled from the trees. The speaker emerged from the thicket, sporting a baboon suit. "Or should I say," he continued, "Brothers?"

"Brother?" Sango cried.

"Brothers?" Shippou squealed.

"Naraku." Miroku groaned.

I knew that voice, it just wasn't possible.

"Tell me, did you truly believe my 'beloved' siblings could kill me that easily?"

"I had hoped… I watched you fall into the Abyss. How—"

"How indeed? You see, while you and that Shadowling were sifting through that compost heap, scrying for the Serpent's eye, I was using it to walk the Logrus. It adopted me, you see. Nothing like having an enemy who knows your innermost secrets, eh, 'Brother'?"

I shook my head in disbelief.

"Oh, yes, I fell into the Abyss. That infernal lot of nothingness. You forget it is the essence of Chaos, to which I am aligned. It may have destroyed my body, but the Logrus allowed my essence to find another host, that fool Onigumo. He offered it so willingly, as well."

"What the hell do you want?" I inquired, trying to keep some level of calm.

"The Shikon Jewel, of course."

"Why? What good will a Shadow plaything such as that do you?"

"Shadow plaything? Your stupidity amuses me. That 'Shadow plaything' is the Unicorn's Heart. Farewell, Brother. I suggest you enjoy your Shadow amusements for now. Soon, Amber will fall."

With that, he faded. A Logrus ghost.

"Why did he address you as 'Brother'?" Miroku questioned, raising an ofuda.

I sighed. This was turning out to be one helluva day. "That was my once-dead brother, Brand."

"Oh, and Miroku," Brand's voice filled the air, "I see you've met your grandfather, Corwin."

Sections in Italics are taken directly from Roger Zelazny's "The Great Book of Amber"


	10. Brand, the Unicorn, and Miroku

The first thing my companions did once they got their jaws off the floor was start yacking them, asking me a barrage of questions.

"Shut up! I need to trump Random before I do anything else."

I got lots of glares for that.

"Miroku, you need to come with me." I saw him start to argue. "Don't say anything, just come here!"

He did, and I pulled out Random's trump, and stared at it. Miroku did too, but I'm not sure he really understood what he was doing.

"Who?"

"Corwin. We have _big_ problems. Brand's back."

"WHAT! Hold on, I want to take this in my chambers." I waited while he strode through the library, past some sentries, and into a mostly empty room, save for some drums.

"Now tell me what you mean, Brand's back."

"The Logrus adopted him, and when he fell into the Abyss, it saved him, and gave him a new body—Naraku. He also said that I was Miroku's grandfather. Do you know anything I don't?"

We had been speaking in Thari, as Random didn't know Japanese. Miroku heard his name, though, and scrowled, but held his tongue.

Random ground his teeth. "Shortly after I fled to Texorami the first time, some… two-hundred years ago, Amber time, Deirdre visited me."

I did some mental math, and figured I had just been exiled to Shadow Earth, if not right before.

"She had fled Amber because she found herself… pregnant."

"What does this have to do with Miroku?"

"I'm getting to that. She fled because it was your child." My jaw dropped. I had impregnated my own sister? Sure, I cared about her, and sometimes wished she wasn't my sibling, but…

He continued. "You two had been drinking, and… well, you fill in the rest. She was afraid Oberon would kill the baby, because how he's always felt about sibling marriages. She had the baby, a girl, and left. I named her Azumi—Deirdre didn't want to name her—but I knew I couldn't take care of her, nor did I want to. So I found Sister Flora on Shadow Earth, and asked her to take care Azumi, or find her a home. You'll have to ask Flora about the rest."

"Before I go, a few last things. First, tell Fiona, Benedict, and Gerard to get ready. I'm going to need all of them. Second, about the Shikon Jewel. Brand said it was the Heart of the Unicorn." He sucked in a sharp breath. "Do you think it is something similar in nature to the Jewel of Judgment?"

He nodded. "Sounds like it. Do you know anything more about its priestess, Moridiko?"

"No. But I intend to find out. Soon. If Brand does what I'm thinking he might…" I did not want to think about the consequences.

"What do you think he's going to attempt?"

"I think he's going to try to destroy it entirely. The Unicorn _is _the Pattern. If he destroys her heart… he'll kill Amber."

"This is more of a problem than I thought. Hurry. I'll gather the others, and get them ready to transfer to you. Call Flora, find out all you can about the boy" he indicated Miroku, "and trump me when your finished."

I passed my hand over the trump, then pulled out Flora's. Before I contacted her, I turned to Miroku.

"It seems I may just be your grandfather. I'm going to find out."

He nodded. "Please do. But, tell me, who was that you were just talking to?"

"King Random, my brother."

"And what will it mean if I am your grandson?"

"I will ask Flora to escort you to the Pattern, to walk it. With Brand running around, we need all the manpower we can get, and this will unlock much strength in you."

I studied Flora's picture. Pretty, but not the brightest of us.

"Brother!"

"Flora, I need some information I believe you have, and I need it now."

She nodded, wary. "What is it, Corwin? You sound pressed for time."

"Did Deirdre ever have my child?"

"Yes, quite a while ago. A girl, Azumi. Random brought her to me, asked me to take care of her. I didn't want to raise a child, especially when Eric had just asked me to keep tabs on you, so I went to where you were at the time—Japan. I found Buddhist monk, Mushin, I think his name was, and gave her to him. He was already caring for an orphaned boy, with the strangest hole in his hand. Had to wear prayer beads just to keep it from sucking him in."

I sighed. So it was true. I turned to Miroku. "I am your grandfather. I need you to walk the Pattern, and now."

He opened his mouth to protest, but I silenced him.

"This is not open to discussion. You will go. She will escort you."

"Flora, do you know Japanese?"

She nodded.

I switched to it then, and said, "I need you to take Miroku down to the Pattern. Give him a set of trumps when he's finished, and tell him how to use them. I need you to hurry, so don't give him a tour of the Palace. And don't flirt with him." I switched back to Thari, "He's a bit of a pervert, so don't be surprised if he gropes you."

I snickered when her eyes enlarged to the size of saucers.

"He wouldn't!"

"Oh, yes he would. So be warned." I changed back to Japanese. "Are you both ready?"

I received two nods.

"Take her hand, and step forward, then."

He did, and gasped when he found himself on the other side of the looking glass.

"I'll hurry, brother."

I replaced her trump and pulled out Random's again.

I didn't wait for an answer when I felt contact.

"I'm ready for them."

His image shifted. I could see the three I had asked for behind him, all three armed, Gerard with his fists and spiked gauntlets, Fiona with several daggers, both throwing and handheld, and Benedict with a long, two handed sword; he now had both hands to use it. All three had horses as well. Martin appeared in the corner of the trump, but remained still.

Benedict came first, followed by Gerard and Fiona.

Random nodded, bid us farewell, and returned to his still-life portrait.

I addressed them in Thari. "I suppose Random briefed you?" It was an unnessesary question, from their looks of dismay. All three nodded, anyhow.

Fiona gasped when she saw Kagome. She had almost as much self-control as Julian, and this breach disturbed me. She knew something that no one else did, but I also knew she was possibly the most powerful among us, save for Brand.

I turned to Inuyasha and the others. "Three of my siblings, Gerard, Benedict, and Fiona. They will be accompanying us." My tone told them it was already decided. "We need to go and see this priestess, Moridiko."

"Why? Does this have something to do with Naraku, or what he said?" Sango asked.

"It has everything to do with that. I believe she may be my grandmother."

"Where's Miroku?" Shippou questioned.

"I sent him with Sister Flora to walk the Pattern. He will return shortly."

I wondered what happened to my daughter, if she was still alive. Probably not, since Miroku was traveling with this group. I also wondered how he could be so powerful, unless Brand had meant that Miroku and I were brothers… How dysfunctional _was _my family? He couldn't have meant Inuyasha—he was Swayvill's son. Shippou was a pure Chaosian. There weren't any other males traveling with us.

I sighed. Thinking too much about this was going to give even me a headache.


	11. Siblings

As it turns out, Benedict already knew Japanese. I did not see fit to question why. Fiona was picking it up at a good pace, though. Gerard didn't have it so lucky—he was slow, as compared to the rest of us, and had no intention of learning a new language, so he had to talk through Benedict or me to communicate with the rest of them.

I was still bothered by Fiona's reaction to Kagome. I was scared of what she might do if I pushed her for it, though. I wondered if I was the only one who noticed Fiona couldn't keep her eyes off the girl.

We had been traveling no more than thirty minutes when I felt the cold tingling sensation of someone trying to trump me. I opened my mind, waiting for it—it had to be Flora or Miroku; he would have just finished transversing the Pattern and ready to come back.

No image presented itself, though. For a good thirty seconds, I waited. Then, I heard the sinister chuckling.

"What the hell do you want, Brand?"

He chuckled again, then letting me see only his body, and not his surroundings. "Corwin, shouldn't you be more cordial to your brother?"

"Fuck no! You aren't my 'brother' any more."

"Just because I chose to side with the… stronger power doesn't make me any less your sibling."

Why was he just small talking me, and not saying anything of significance? Was he just trying to rile me up? Let him play that game, then. I'll have none of it. I put on my best stoic mask, and quieted the voice that told me I could try to throw something at him.

"Who says that Chaos is stronger?" I asked, icily.

"No one has to _say _it is stronger for it to be, 'Brother'."

I got flashes of my life, on this shadow, when I didn't know who I was. Why would they plague me now? I had no reason to bother with those memories at this point.

"I see you pain, Corwin. All those years, unaware of your heritage. It must have been _unpleasant_ at least; maybe even—"

I had figured out what he was doing; using the trump contact to rifle though my head like some strange book. I would have none of it.

"Go and burn in Hell!" I screamed at him, and then tried to shut off the connection. It was difficult, if not impossible if Miroku had not chosen that time to try to trump me. I focused all my attention on him, and tried to shut out Brand. It worked, and his mind disappeared from mine.

"Corwin, are you alright?" he asked, in Thari.

"Just that infernal brother of mine." I spat out.

_Bring me through,_ his thoughts came into my head, though not spoken, _we have things you and I need to discuss. Alone._

I wondered all afternoon what Miroku needed to speak with me about. He said nothing about it, though, and he rode with Sango on Kirara, as he normally did. I was left to my thoughts.

How was it that Brand knew more about the rest of us than we did? The thought was unnerving, at least. Did he truly intend to destroy Amber by destroying the Unicorn's Heart? As long as we had shards of it, he couldn't destroy it. But as long as we had shards, Dworkin would still be ill. Decisions, decisions.

And, if what Brand had implied was true, about Miroku and I being brothers, then not only was his mother born out of incest, but he himself was the result of a union between my daughter and Miroku's grandfather. How could that be, though? Dad had been hanging out in Lorraine until he came with me. Sure, we went to Shadow Earth to get some guns and special ammunition… I did leave him alone for a couple of weeks, as a German tourist. Come to think of it, the timing would be about right… except this seemed like the feudal era, and I had passed through Shadow to get here. How had he known to come to _that _shrine, and to pass through _that _well, or at least to Shadowshift here?

Nothing but questions. I decided to leave it to stew around in my brain for a while, and thought about the well instead. I now knew that both of them were beings of Substance. I knew that Inuyasha was Swayvill's son, and thus aligned to the Logrus. Kagome, though, I was still unsure of. Fiona knew something about her, but she would hand me my balls on a silver platter if I dug too deep where she obviously didn't want probed. Everything confusing there, also.

I wondered what else Miroku had learned from the Pattern. It had either taught him or implanted the knowledge of Thari in his gray matter. The difference was academic. He knew Thari, and that was that. I wondered if the Pattern showed him what his ancestry was, or who his brothers and sisters were. Did it show him what Amber, set atop Kolvir looks like? Did it impart to him the knowledge of the Primal Pattern?

I was starting to get a headache from so many unanswered questions jumbled in my head, so I relaxed, and watched the group. I turned to Kirara, Sango, and Miroku just in time to watch one of their rub-_slap_-"Hentai!" displays. This was the first time any of my siblings-minus Miroku-had seen such. Benedict looked on in stoic interest, though the gleam in his eyes betrayed his amusement. Gerard failed to see Miroku's trademark behavior, and didn't understand what "Hentai" meant, so the confusion that marred his cow-eyes was understandable. Fiona was too caught up in staring absently at Kagome that she failed to notice the comedy.

It was dusk by this time, so Inuyasha called a halt at a clearing, and told us to set up camp. I could hear the burbling of a stream nearby.

"I want to go take a bath!" Kagome declared, once Inuyasha had set her down.

"_I want to go take a bath—_you say that _every_ day!"

"And what's wrong with me wanting to stay _clean_?"

"There ain't nothing wrong with you wanting to stay _clean_; you just don't need a bath _now_!"

"Aarggg!"

I watched the argument unfold before me. Gerard looked confused again, as he knew no Japanese, but Fiona held a hand over her mouth, probably to keep from laughing, and Benedict actually had a slight upturning of his mouth.

Kagome stomped off towards her bag, and pulled out a couple of bottles—I recognized them as shampoo and conditioner.

"I _am _going to take a bath, Dog Boy, whether you like it or not. Sango, why don't you come too?"

"Oh, I wanna come!" Shippou called.

"That's just fine, Shippou," Kagome said in a sweet tone. It quickly dried up when she turned towards Inuyasha. "At least _one _demon around here wants to stay presentable!" Her glower rivaled Fiona's. 'Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned.' I was glad Inuyasha was on the receiving end instead of me.

"Oi, wench! Who said you could disregard me?"

"SIT!"

He sputtered for a few seconds, probably trying to get dirt out of his mouth, then shouted, "You're not going until you make me some Ramen!"

Fiona chose then to step in. "I'd like a bath too."

I was surprised that Fiona seemed unphased by the hanyou going down at one word from the girl. The other two newcomers, though… Gerard stood mouth-agape, and Benedict's eyebrows rose a hair.

"Shall I join you ladies?" Miroku asked.

"NO!" came a threesome reply.

Sango muttered something that sounded suspiciously like "Hentai" under her breath, then turned and ushered Fiona and Kagome, with Shippou on her shoulder, towards the stream.

"Gerard, why don't you go collect some firewood?" I asked.

He looked at me a little strangely, but obeyed. I could tell he did not necessarily enjoy taking orders from me, but I was his elder, as was Benedict. If he refused, and Benedict called him on it, he would probably do it out of respect for our brother, if nothing else.

"Miroku, why don't we scout out this way?" I nodded my head towards the way we were headed.

He nodded, and grabbed his staff, then followed me. When we were out of hearing range, I stopped. "So, what do you need to speak to me about?"


	12. Plots

I watched as he sighed, then sat down, staff stuck into the ground, head resting on it. "She told me everything. Well, she showed me most of it. The rest of it is just there, like memories that belong to someone else."

I remained standing, and just listened.

"This Unicorn—our ancestor—she is Moridiko. She showed me what happened at Patternfall, and everything leading up to it. I know what they did to you. Not just your siblings, but that Dara woman. She certainly was a beauty!" His eyes glazed over, thinking about that bitch of a woman.

"Go on." I urged.

"Of course. She told me what the Jewel really was, and what Brand intends for it. He is going to complete it, and then feed it to the Serpent of Chaos. If he does that, then all of Amber will fall."

I had suspected as much. Knowing it for sure, though, certainly put a heavy weight on my shoulders and in my gut. I could not let Brand destroy the Immortal City.

He continued after a moment, his voice darkening. "She spoke of another like herself. A second Pattern. Do you know anything of it?"

I took a seat facing him. "I do know of it. I am its creator, the same way Dworkin is of Amber." I felt as if he was examining me, seeing how far to trust me.

He nodded. "She explained as much, indicating that without her medallion, her Heart, all of Amber is weakened. She told me to walk this other as well." He looked as if someone had just struck him. "Corwin, does Brand know about your Pattern?"

"Yes, he does. He was there when I made it." I didn't understand where he was going with this.

"Do you think it possible that he would try to destroy not just Amber, but this other world as well?"

Oh, shit. "What else did she tell you?" I probed.

He hesitated. "I am your grandson, but also your brother. I am unsure of how I feel about that, exactly."

I had to chuckle at that. "Think of it this way—you're stronger in the Pattern than I am. I wonder: our father was able to shapeshift; do you know if you are capable? It would be a great boon to us."

"She spoke nothing about my abilities, save for telling me that I must figure out on my own what I can do. I will try, though."

I waited, and watched. His face screwed up in concentration, and I let out an excited gasp when his features began to waiver. Soon, I stared into the eyes of an exact replica of a lady—she looked a lot like me, though somewhat like Deirdre. I couldn't help the gasp that escaped. She was beautiful.

"This is what my mother looked like, or at least, how I remember her. I may be biased, though. I tend to like pretty women." The voice was soft, and feminine, but held a little spice in it.

Almost immediately, he reverted back to his normal appearance. I wondered how hard it was, and if, using the powers of my pattern, if I could shapeshift. I tried, to no avail.

"The Unicorn also showed me how to free her body from the statue in the cave. I will need Fiona's help with that."

I nodded. "I can see that easily. She is the best Sorceress among us. Just, don't get her mad, okay?"

"What happens if I do?" he asked warily.

"Let's just say… her power rivals that of both Brand and Oberon. She _was _the one that helped mastermind the plot to get rid of Dad in the first place, and she was essential in banishing our brother into the Abyss. Unfortunately, it proved not enough to keep him dead."

"I see. Good to know."

"Is there anything else of up-most importance; if not, we should head back—the other might worry if we are gone overlong."

"Other than I think we should hurry, no… Oh, wait—She mentioned something about a Ghost?"

"A ghost? Like a spirit?" This was new.

"No, something related to your son, Merlin. She said I should consult a think called Ghost… She implied it might be able to help us. Do you know about what I am speaking?"

I nodded. "I believe She's referring to Ghostwheel, a thing my son created, and it turned sentient. One could think of it as my grandson." I chuckled. "It calls him 'Dad'."

"What exactly is it… or him?" He looked utterly confused.

"Ghost is a machine on a distant Shadow that monitors other Shadows. It's almost like a video encyclopedia of all of the Shadows, and it can act as a Trump. It also acts like a teenager sometimes, though."

"How could it help?"

"I don't know exactly, but Merlin would know."

He nodded. "We shall make it a point to ask… Oh, and, She said something else—it confuses me. She said not to trust relatives unless there is no other choice, and even then to be wary. I had the impression from Her and from Flora that things had gotten quite a bit calmer since Patternfall. Why the warning?"

I laughed, then. "Do not be naïve. Do not think we do not plot and scheme, even in peaceful times. I am convinced some of us plot in our sleep. Be cordial, be polite, do not let any of us Amberites see your fears—they will be acted on and used against you. Also, always keep your mind working. If you want to survive, this will become instinct to you. Even when I was stranded on Shadow Earth for 600 years with no memories or knowledge of who I was, I still did this."

He got up then. "Shall we return before the other get suspicious?"

I started to reply when Kagome's voice carried through the woods; "Inuyasha, there are jewel shards nearby—closing in on us _fast!_"

We glanced at each other then dashed back towards camp.


	13. Alliances

I arrived in time to see Inuyasha trampled by a tornado. When it stop and the dust cleared, I saw a Chaosian, dressed in brown pelts, with his long black hair up in a high ponytail. He was holding Kagome's hands, and it looked like she was feeling a bit awkward, and I realized that this demon was standing on Inuyasha. The hanyou-turned-footstool didn't look pleased.

"Get off of me, you mangy wolf! And get away from Kagome!"

"How have you been, my Kago—" He cut himself off and started sniffing, then turned towards me, and the rest of my family. I noticed someone had trumped in Julian. "So, you are Dworkin's offspring. I was wondering when you would come looking for these," he said, motioning towards the jewel shards in his legs and arm.

"How do you know of our grandsire?" Gerard asked, guardedly.

"My pack supported him when he revolted against Chaos. Unfortunately, since we are not of his blood, we could not follow unless he allowed us, and he was 'preoccupied' shortly after. We were immediately cast out, and exiled to this shadow."

Something was gnawing at my brain. This demon looked familiar, and I knew at some point I had known him. When he glanced over at me for the first time, his features betrayed a momentary amount of surprise, but it was quickly hidden. He knew me too. If what he said was true, then it was highly possible I had run into him when I was unaware of my heritage.

"Are you still loyal to him?" Fiona broke the uneasy silence that had consumed us.

He bowed. "Yes, milady. I and my pack are still loyal to him."

"What do you mean by 'preoccupied'?" Julian asked.

"As soon as he had created the Pattern, Swayvill used it as a distraction to King Uther so he could overthrow him."

This was news to me. I glanced at my siblings. Gerard showed surprise unhidden, Fiona looked cool as always, and Julian betrayed nothing either. Benedict hid surprise, but it was displayed plainly for a moment. Miroku didn't know enough about Chaos' history to understand.

Benedict spoke, and while his voice was soft, it demanded attention. "Why is Brand back? Last time, he was attempting to destroy Amber; are those his intentions again?"

"Brand? Who is—" the demon looked confused.

"Yes." Miroku cut in. "He intends to feed the Heart of the Unicorn to the Serpent of Chaos. Kouga, Brand is Naraku."

Kouga snarled. "What relation does that _thing _have to you?" His voice was laced with venom.

"He was our brother." Fiona answered. So she too no longer acknowledged him as a sibling.

"What do you mean, 'was'?" Kouga shot back.

"He has forsaken Amber and sided with Chaos. He is but its tool now, and—" Fiona started.

"And he was adopted by the Logrus. He is no longer our sibling or allie. He is our enemy." I finished.

"We must go to the cave of Moridiko. Time is of the essence; and we have business there. If you are loyal to Amber, I suggest you come with us. We can talk about the past on the way, but we must hurry." Miroku interjected before any more was said.

"Why the hurry?" Julian asked in his almost impeded way of speaking.

"Moridiko _is _the Unicorn. We must free her—she will know what to do. But I will need your help, Fiona." He answered.

Just then, two panting demons broke into the clearing.

"Ginta, Hakaku, we must accompany them to Moridiko." Kouga commanded. His voice left no room for argument.

"Like hell you are!" Inuyasha cut in.

"He is going." Both Benedict and Fiona stated, simply.

"Oh no he isn't! I don't want him anywhere near Kagome!" Inuyasha retorted.

I chuckled at his antics.

"And what are _you _laughing at?" he snarled at me.

"Your about to get your ass handed to you on a platter."

"By these two weakling? Yeah, right."

Kouga raised an eyebrow, but said nothing.

"You wish to challenge me?" Benedict asked.

"Keh, I'll take you on anytime!" He added to Fiona, "You too, after I finish with this bastard."

Benedict drew one of his swords, from his waist, and left the more obvious two handed sword on his back in place. He was holding a katana; it was a nice, silver affair with kanji inscribed near the hilt: a warrior's sword is imbued with his soul.

Inuyasha drew Tetsusaiga, and it transformed to the fang; he held it in an offensive pose towards Benedict. He really didn't know what he was getting himself into.

Inuyasha attacked, a simple charge with no real finesse. Benedict, moving with such speed it tricked the eye, blocked, then parried and reposed, but in such a way that it knocked Tetsusaiga from Inuyasha's hands and put him off balance. Benedict used the blunt side to knock him down, and then pressed the tip to his throat. I saw Kagome tense, and Kouga try to hide a smile.

"Get up, and grab your sword." Benedict commanded, and resheathed his own. He turned and walked towards Moridiko's cave, leaving a very bewildered and embarrassed Inuyasha on the ground.

--+--

We made camp that night in a clearing adjacent to a stream. After the duel, the rest of the trip had been uneventful and silent.

Inuyasha had said something about hunting and had left. I wondered if it was to hunt or to nurse his wounded pride. Kagome started a fire, and had put a pot of water on to boil. I excused myself to go and bathe in the water upriver a bit, as to ensure a bit of privacy.

I was just rebuckling my sword belt when Kouga stepped out from the woods.

I still hadn't recalled where I had known Kouga from before. It bothered me—a feeling of something that was just beyond my recollection, and fairly important.

"Where do I know you from?" I asked.

"I see they did what they wanted to, with that electroshock therapy."

Back before I had been in the car accident that had landed me in Greenwood Private Hospital, I had been admitted to Porter Sanitarium, forced in by Brand, who was acting as some doctor. He had used it to hide the memories of my life that were beginning to return to me, after 600 years.

"How do you know about that?"

"I had been with you the three days before; a man named Ganelon had come to me, and asked me to help you remember who you were." He chuckled. "I didn't know at the time, but he was Dworkin's son, your father. He masked not only his looks but also his scent with that disguise. Quite the character."

I nodded.

"It wasn't until he showed up almost a decade later and entrusted me with this sword," indicating the weapon at his waist with the red hilt, "under instructions to carry it with me always, but never draw it, and to give it to you should I ever see again, that he revealed who he was."

"Why did you help him the first time, when you didn't know who he was?"

"Because he told me who _you _were. That you were to take the throne of Amber, and that I could get off this Kami-forsaken shadow."

"Do you still wish to leave?"

"Hell yes!"

"Do you swear to serve Amber with your life?" I wasn't taking any chances bringing a traitor into our homeland.

He nodded, then took the sword, sheath and all, and laid it at my feet. "I and my kinsmen will serve Amber, and her liege, with our lives. I only ask that you bring us out of this exile." He swore, still kneeling before me, offering the sword.

I took the sword, a sign of acceptance. Great power radiated from it, similar to Tetsusaiga and Grayswandir. I drew it, and held the blunt edge to my forehead. All swords of Substance had names, and I asked this one what it was called. _Kaerukoun_. It pulsed in my hand, proving that yes, its name is Kaerukoun—'alter luck'—and that I was to wield it. I resheathed Kaerukoun and placed it in my sword belt, next to Grayswandir.

At that, I turned and headed back towards camp; Kouga followed.

"Why is it that you and Inuyasha don't get along?"

"Mutt-face doesn't like me because he's afraid I'll steal Kagome." He chuckled. "I just do it to get him all riled up. Everyone else can see it clear as day—but those two don't realize their in love."

I wondered why anyone would take a mate for life. Sure, Random seemed happy with Vialle, but she will die eventually; she doesn't have royal blood, so while she may live longer than most creatures of Shadow because of her proximity to Substance, eventually she will die, and Random will be a bachelor once again. Besides, if our family is any indication of how faithful we would be to our life mates, I doubt any of us would be happy. "Do you intend to take a mate for life?"

"Yes—Ayame. She's another Chaosian, and a wolf-Chaosian at that. She will help me rebuild the pack."

"What's with the different animal types of Chaosians, anyways?" I still didn't quite understand that.

"Well, we're shapeshifters, and while we can assume any shape we want, we have a select few we prefer. Mutt-face is half-dog Chaosian. He can't shapeshift yet because he has to walk to Logrus first. His brother, Sesshoumaru, walked it long ago, and his preferred shapes are his human-form, his dog form—though it isn't very efficient without his left arm—and his energy ball form. Dara is a goat Chaosian."

I sneered at her name. "How do you know Dara?"

"Her husband, Sawall, is my father. I'm not sure if they're still married, though."

"Why would you want a mate for life, if it isn't in keeping with 'tradition'?"

"Because I discovered something, from reading ancient scrolls when I was still a pup; there is a way to extend your mate's life, to match your own. I want the person I have pups with to be someone I _want _to spend the rest of my life with. No offence, but I don't dig the whole dysfunctional family thing."

I felt the tingling that accompanied trump contact, and held up my hand to silence Kouga. It was Flora, but there was a sense of urgency with her. "Flora, what's wrong?"

"It's Random—he's missing, and we can't reach him with trumps, and there was another of those things that followed him when he came to my house on Shadow Earth—you know the guys with the grey skin and sharp teeth and—"

"How long has he been gone?" I asked, cutting her off.

"Two hours. We searched the whole castle—we can't find him. And Martin's been wounded!"

Shit. "How bad is it?"

"He'll be fine, I think, but we need to find Random, NOW!" She was screaming at me.

"Why? What's so important, woman, you're shouting my ear off?" I was loosing patience with her.

"Because Amber's under attack!"


	14. Control Issues

Damn, and damn again! "Who's attacking?" I asked Flora.

"You're worried about _who _is attacking Us at a time like this?"

"Whatever. I'll trump you later. Let me talk with the others first." Then, with a hard mental shove, I broke contact. "Well, this just got a bit more interesting."

Kouga nodded. "What should I do?"

"Follow me. I must speak with the others."

I bounded off towards camp, Kouga at my heels, and arrived in the clearing not thirty seconds later. "Everyone, listen up, now. That's an order." I used a tone that brooked no argument. "Amber is under siege." I studied each reaction, looking for any hint of treason. Julian and Fiona stared at me impassively, Benedict simply raised a delicate eyebrow, though worry shone in his eyes. Miroku's gripped his staff till his knuckles turned white. The others just looked mildly confused. "Not only that, but Random is missing, and Martin is wounded, though not mortally. Benedict, you, Julian, Gerard, Miroku, Sango and that cat mononoke go to Amber and fight. Benedict, I want you to take the lead." They all nodded, and Benedict pulled one of his trumps, and in a matter of moments, they were gone, with nothing but a rainbow after-image left.

"What about the rest of us?" Kagome asked.

"Kouga, sent your two men to retrieve the rest of your tribe. Make sure they know to follow my orders." Ginta and Hakkaku looked at Kouga, and he nodded and they left. "Fiona, I need you to go to the cave that the Unicorn is in and free her any way you can. Inuyasha and Kagome will join you. Kou—"

"Like hell we will!" He crossed he arms in his Haori and looked off towards the east. "You expect me to just take orders for you? Fat chance. You know, I should—"

Before he could react, Kouga had slugged him, and sent him flying into a tree. The three foot diameter tree gave a resounding crack, then fell in slow motion. Growling, Kouga stalked up to his fallen form, and spoke in a stone cold voice, "You. Will. Take. Orders. From. Corwin. You will do what he says. He is the Alpha male here. I do not know what all has happened, but I see his pack obeying him, so you will also."

By this time, Inuyasha had stood, and glared at the wolf demon. "And what do you care what happens to this Amber place?"

"BECAUSE I WANT IT TO BE MY HOME!"

"Whatever, I still don't want to take orders from some wimpy human." Even though he said this, the fire in his voice was gone.

I watched the scene with interest. Kouga was very dedicated. Interesting, and good to know.

"We do not have time for your petty control issues. If you do not wish to come, then by all means, go with Corwin, and Kagome will accompany me alone." Fiona stated, leaving no inflection in her voice whatsoever. Those that did not know her would think her apathetic. I knew better. She was pissed to high heaven.

"Feh."

"I thought so." She replied.

"What about Shippou?" Kagome asked me.

"He will come with me."

"Are you sure he will be alright?"

"Yes, now go."

I heard her sigh. I knew she wasn't happy leaving the kit, and that she was a bit miffed at me, but I needed him.

Inuyasha couched down for Kagome to climb on, which she did. I saw Fi reach into thin air and pull out a tall green stallion. She mounted, and rode off, not waiting for the other two.

"Hey, wait up!" Inuyasha yelled to her.

I turned to and saw the young kit looking very depressed, and nervous. "Shippou, you will be accompanying Kouga and myself. We need to look for Random."

"Why couldn't I go with Kagome?" He asked, looking at the ground.

"Because I need you with me."

Shippou looked sharply up at me. "Why? Why me? How could I help?" He sounded almost hopeful.

"I need you because you are small, and easily hid, and you have very good senses, better than mine."

His chest puffed out in pride. "Tell me what to do!"

"First, we travel to Amber."

I told them of my plan, and warned them about trumping.

"It's like stepping though a doorway, so don't be afraid." I wanted to make sure that neither one of them would go into hysterics when we trumped, seeing as neither one of them had done it before. Also, I needed to wait till Kouga's men returned with everyone.

I saw Kouga sniff the air. "They will be here soon. Very soon."

Shippou squealed and jumped up to my shoulder. "I want Kagome!" he wailed.

"You'll see her soon enough. Don't worry." Kouga told him.

Just then, Ginta, Hakkaku, and Ayame broke though the clearing, shortly followed by many others I had not seen before. "This is Corwin, and you all _will _submit to him as you do to me, am I clear?"

There were many nodded heads.

"Alright" I started, "First off, I need you to come with me to Amber. You will fight for the city. In return, it will be your home, and you will be paid as professional soldiers."

I heard one growl, from somewhere in the middle of the pack.

"Come forward, if you refuse."

Growling Mouth stepped forward. I turned to Kouga and nodded.

"You are hereby banished from the pack. Leave and never return, or forfeit your life," Kouga said to him.

I watched as the disobedient one's jaw fell slack. He growled again, and Kouga replied in kind. I didn't understand what was going on, though I figured that it was some form of conversation. Suddenly, Kouga slashed his claws at him, and tore the muscles in his right arm all the way down to the bone. "Take that as a warning, Koragima, and leave now if you value you life."

Koragima nodded, and dashed off.

"Any other questions?" Kouga asked. Dead silence replied. "Good."

"Stand in single file, I am going to send you though to Amber. When your turn comes, grab the person's hand and step forward. Don't think too much on it."

I saw them reassemble themselves, while I pulled out Flora's trump.

"Corwin?" She greeted me.

"Yes. I'm sending in reinforcements. How goes the battle?"

"Strangely. The first wave was very strong, but there have been no reinforcements. I would have thought the cavalry would have arrived by now."

Shit. This was probably meant to be a distraction. Damn. "Flora, please tell me you have extra guards on all the Patterns, and on Dworkin."

"No, just the Primal Pattern."

I felt my heart clench, and a feeling of dread overcome me. "I'm sending them though. Put them as guards. And do it in a hurry!"

"Why, what's—"

"Just do it now!"

I motioned for them to come forward. I had them trumped in a matter of minutes. When they were all on the other side, I slid my palm over the card, and replaced it, then looked up at Kouga. He had a very worried expression marring his features.

"What?"

Suddenly, I heard Shippou wail into my shoulder, and I felt his tears through my clothes.

Kouga pulled him off my shoulder, and spoke gruffly, but fatherly to him, "Shippou, what's wrong with you?"

"I'm SCARED! I can't help you guys! I'd make too much noise, and… and…"

"Shhhh. Don't be. I have faith in you."

"We do need to hurry, though." I cut in.

Shippou dried his tears, and nodded, a new determination in his eyes. Kouga placed him on his own shoulder then. I pulled out a trump of Amber then, and concentrated on Random's room in the castle. When I felt it was sufficiently strong link, I grabbed Kouga's shoulder and stepped forward, dragging him with me. I replaced my trump, then looked around.

"We need to figure out where Random went, and how. If he trumped out, I can't track him, but if he shadowshifted, then I might be able to. I doubt he would use the Patte… wait, I have an idea. You two, memorize his scent, then follow me. Kouga leaped to the bed, and sniffed the comforter, as did Shippou. It took not ten seconds for them to turn and look at me, then nod. I left the room without further ado and headed down into the heart to Kolvir, down to the Pattern.


	15. Unexpected

We tend to take the Pattern for granted. I know I do. I also forget it is sentient. Any usage of its powers, it would know about. I just have to figure out how to communicate with it.

Kouga and I bolted down the spiral staircase, while Shippou rode on Kouga's shoulder.

Seventh corridor, follow it all the way to the back. As we approached, I noticed several of the wolf-pack stationed outside. They gave a collective sigh when they sighted Kouga.

"Kouga-sama, what's goin—"

"Not now."

The one known as Ginta shut his mouth and nodded.

I walked inside the room, and saw several other of the wolf tribe, including Hakkaku. I ignored him, and walked around the edge of the Pattern, to where it read "Start here". I always though that was a bit cheesey, too much like one of those pencil-mazes in game magazines.

Instead of walking it, like I normally would, I spoke to it. "I need to know where Random is."

I saw a flash of white, and heard several gasps. Standing dead center of the Pattern was a Pattern Ghost of the Unicorn. She looked me in the eye, and I felt her probing my mind. My instinctual reaction was to shut her out, but I kept myself from doing so.

_Walk the Pattern with Kaerukoun, and Kouga._

I shook my head. "How? Surely it will kill him? He's not an Amberite."

_Trust me, Grandson Corwin. I choose whom I kill. He needs this power, and you need to activate the sword._

Activate the sword? As confused as I was, I obeyed. "Kouga, walk the pattern with me. Hold onto my shoulder at all times. You will feel a current, and some of it will be very difficult. But you must walk it with me." I wasn't taking any chances letting Kouga walk it alone.

So we started the difficult, winding way together. I felt the familiar pull, the feeling of it passing _through _me instead of around. I saw the familiar sparks start about my feet, surrounded by the blue circle. What I didn't expect was Kaerukoun to start pulsating and jiggling, as if wishing to be drawn. Who was I to deny it?

I drew the sword, and instead of me wielding the sword, it began wielding me. Immediately, I felt it jerk, and try as I might, I couldn't hold onto it, and it slipped from my fingers, then righted itself, point-down along the pattern, as if it was walking it itself. I followed it. I noticed it slowed when it hit the First Veil, just as any normal person would, and I and Kouga hit it shortly after, and my concentration returned to the task at hand. The familiar sensation of being taken apart, atom by atom, then reassembled fell upon me, and I vaguely heard Kouga grunt. The resistance fell away, and I noticed the sweat on my brow, though I did not spare the concentration to wipe it away. The Second Veil was worse, and lasted longer, as I expected it to. The feeling of always essaying the Pattern arose in my chest; I had never been anything other than the Corwin Walking The Pattern. I briefly wondered if Kouga felt the same way. The Third Veil came and went, and finally I was to the Grand Curve. The last three steps are always the hardest. I felt like a claymation character in slow motion. Time sped up again as I exited the Pattern, and stood in its center, Kouga beside me, Kaerukoun in front of me, still standing though not touching anything. Sounds returned to my ears, and I was very aware of my overworking heart.

I felt Kaerukoun begin to vibrate, and soon it became a buzzing sound, and I reached down to hold it, and the buzzing stopped immediately. However, I did feel it begin to pulsate with power not my own.

_Corwin… Do you hear me?_

The voice rang out loud and clear in my head. I knew that voice, though I had thought I would never hear it again. It was the voice of my father.


End file.
